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Emerson Middle

Public Grades 6-8

2488^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,761 California Middle Schools

Better than 10% of California middle schools

Summary

Emerson Middle is a public school serving 813 students in grades 6-8 within the Bakersfield City School District, which ranks in the bottom 12% of all districts in California.

The school faces significant academic challenges, particularly in mathematics where only 5.89% of students are proficient, a struggle shared across all middle schools in its district. However, Emerson performs comparably to or slightly better than some district peers like Washington Middle and Sierra Middle, and it shows a relative strength in science. A notable concern is the extreme volatility in performance for specific student groups, such as English Learners and students with disabilities, whose scores have dropped sharply in recent years, suggesting inconsistent support systems.

When compared to schools in neighboring districts, a clear gap emerges. For example, Greenfield Middle in the Greenfield Union district and O. J. Actis Junior High in Panama-Buena Vista Union achieve significantly higher proficiency rates in both math and English despite serving similar student populations. While Emerson has made impressive progress in reducing chronic student absences, this improvement has not yet translated into better academic outcomes, pointing to broader instructional or district-level factors influencing performance.

813

Students ?

21.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

$18,410

Per pupil spending ?

90.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

801 Fourth St.
Bakersfield, CA 93304-2220

(661) 631-5260

District: Bakersfield City

Students who attend Emerson Middle usually attend:

High:

Bakersfield High

Feeder schools for Emerson Middle:

Elementary:	Franklin Elementary
	McKinley Elementary
	Roosevelt Elementary
	Stella I. Hills Elementary

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

77.1%

African American:

13.2%

White:

6.0%

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At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 7th percentile in 2013 → 10th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the California average (16% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (10th percentile)

!Mathematics scores 31 pts below the California average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school16%

District avg21%

California avg41%

2,488^th of 2,761

California public middle schools ?

Bottom 10%▲ up 4 pts since 2015

From bottom 6% (2015) to bottom 10% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

6^th of 10Middle Schools in the Bakersfield City

1357^th of 1,543Bakersfield City among California districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	13.7	2488 of 2761	9.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	15.4	2462 of 2783	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.9	2363 of 2781	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.5	2554 of 2740	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	8.7	2589 of 2715	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.1	2318 of 2480	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	13.0	2282 of 2508	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	9.8	2345 of 2497	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	10.8	2329 of 2477	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	11.2	2202 of 2379	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	12.4	2081 of 2259	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	9.3	2109 of 2236	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	13.0	2001 of 2179	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	11.1	1911 of 2063	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	12.1	1845 of 2005	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	11.1	1860 of 1999	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	16.6	1570 of 1804	13.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	14.4	1581 of 1777	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	11.0	1656 of 1769	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	14.7	576 of 609	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	28.5	458 of 627	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	31.1	425 of 613	30.7%	★★☆☆☆
2022	25.0	502 of 637	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	22.3	533 of 643	17.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	26.8	458 of 600	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	25.1	1259 of 1531	17.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	18.8	1433 of 1491	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	21.2	1274 of 1369	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	29.6	1248 of 1478	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	42.2	675 of 1521	55.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	27.7	1344 of 1540	12.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	24.8	1381 of 1442	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	35.4	772 of 1364	43.4%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	13.3	2319 of 2533	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	15.7	2276 of 2551	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	16.9	2224 of 2531	12.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	13.1	2337 of 2509	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	8.7	2297 of 2380	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	11.4	2115 of 2262	6.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	19.4	2029 of 2395	15.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.6	1999 of 2388	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	25.5	1807 of 2374	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.5	2166 of 2359	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	10.4	2112 of 2213	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	15.7	1875 of 2072	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	20.6	427 of 477	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	16.0	375 of 394	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	17.0	302 of 320	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	17.3	2237 of 2542	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.6	2236 of 2579	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.9	2088 of 2531	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.5	2263 of 2458	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	10.8	2246 of 2369	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	14.1	2064 of 2230	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	14.2	2285 of 2534	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	14.9	2294 of 2552	10.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	19.1	2129 of 2538	16.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.6	2387 of 2527	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	8.2	2337 of 2407	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	10.7	2162 of 2273	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Migrant

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	10.4	94 of 95	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	59.9	23 of 86	73.3%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	21.3	1410 of 1566	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	24.2	1308 of 1552	15.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	36.0	884 of 1531	42.3%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	12.1	1368 of 1520	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	14.2	1354 of 1537	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	7.2	1472 of 1543	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	5.7	1503 of 1555	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	3.7	1579 of 1602	1.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	3.4	1479 of 1496	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Disabled (2022)18th percentile+11 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)16th percentile+4 vs school

Hispanic (2025)15th percentile+5 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)12th percentile~ school

Homeless (2025)10th percentile~ school

White (2025)10th percentile~ school

Special Education (2025)10th percentile~ school

Male (2025)10th percentile~ school

Female (2025)8th percentile~ school

African American (2025)5th percentile-4 vs school

Migrant (2025)1st percentile-9 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy25%-24 vs state

Science17%-16 vs state

Mathematics6%-31 vs state

★

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Schools Near Emerson Middle

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				CAST Science (2025)		Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2025)				Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2025)				Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CAST Science 8th Grade	CAST Science All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Emerson Middle	Public	6-8	801 Fourth St.	Bakersfield	93304	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5260	813	37	21.9	90.2%	49 (6.0%)	107 (13.2%)	627 (77.1%)	13 (1.6%)	4 (0.5%)	2 (0.2%)	10 (1.2%)	13.7	2488^th of 2761 public middle schools	9.9%		15.4	2462^nd of 2783 public middle schools	11.5%	26	16.9	16.9	28.5	21.6	26.0	24.8	7.5	7.3	3.4	5.9	$18,410	$2,638	$15,772
Sequoia Junior High	Public	7-8	900 Belle Terr.	Bakersfield	93304	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5940	746	35	21.5	97.2%	22 (2.9%)	60 (8.0%)	651 (87.3%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	2 (0.3%)	9 (1.2%)	12.4	2542^nd of 2761 public middle schools	7.9%		15	2478^th of 2783 public middle schools	11.0%	64	14.9	14.9		22.1	17.7	20.0		9.6	6.6	8.1	$19,690	$3,749	$15,941
Abraham Lincoln Junior High	Public	7-8	800 Chico St.	Bakersfield	93305	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5950	527	27	19.7	99.4%	15 (2.8%)	48 (9.1%)	454 (86.1%)	3 (0.6%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	5 (0.9%)	6.7	2702^nd of 2761 public middle schools	2.1%		9	2698^th of 2783 public middle schools	3.1%	4	3.7	3.7		17.4	13.1	15.5		3.6	1.9	2.9	$22,162	$2,788	$19,374
Curran Middle	Public	6-8	1116 Lymric Way	Bakersfield	93309	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5240	973	46	21.1	87.4%	50 (5.1%)	113 (11.6%)	771 (79.2%)	12 (1.2%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	25 (2.6%)	14.7	2453^rd of 2761 public middle schools	11.2%		21.7	2186^th of 2783 public middle schools	21.5%	267	12.9	12.9	25.5	28.9	28.3	28.0	8.8	7.3	6.1	7.1	$17,919	$2,510	$15,409
Washington Middle	Public	6-8	1101 Noble Ave.	Bakersfield	93305	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5810	639	30	21.6	91.1%	46 (7.2%)	45 (7.0%)	537 (84.0%)	1 (0.2%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (0.9%)	9.7	2624^th of 2761 public middle schools	5.0%		9.5	2682^nd of 2783 public middle schools	3.6%	58	8.9	8.9	22.6	22.9	17.0	20.6	5.5	6.1	3.0	4.8	$18,263	$2,817	$15,446
Fred L. Thompson Junior High	Public	7-8	4200 Planz Rd.	Bakersfield	93309	Kern County	Panama-Buena Vista Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 832-8011	714	42	17.0	91.6%	50 (7.0%)	95 (13.3%)	526 (73.7%)	15 (2.1%)	2 (0.3%)	5 (0.7%)	20 (2.8%)	19.7	2239^th of 2761 public middle schools	18.9%		19	2298^th of 2783 public middle schools	17.4%	59	17.4	17.4		32.1	32.0	32.1		12.1	7.8	9.8	$18,268	$2,057	$16,211
Sierra Middle	Public	6-8	3017 Center St.	Bakersfield	93306	Kern County	Bakersfield City	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 631-5470	731	35	20.7	96.4%	31 (4.2%)	21 (2.9%)	663 (90.7%)	2 (0.3%)	7 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.0%)	14.4	2467^th of 2761 public middle schools	10.6%		14.3	2504^th of 2783 public middle schools	10.0%	37	14.6	14.6	21.8	30.0	27.6	27.4	3.0	5.6	6.4	5.4	$18,917	$2,665	$16,252
O. J. Actis Junior High	Public	7-8	2400 Westholme Blvd.	Bakersfield	93309	Kern County	Panama-Buena Vista Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 833-1250	681	42	16.1	84.6%	71 (10.4%)	87 (12.8%)	467 (68.6%)	22 (3.2%)	3 (0.4%)	6 (0.9%)	24 (3.5%)	23.8	2061^st of 2761 public middle schools	25.4%		28.7	1871^st of 2783 public middle schools	32.8%	190	18.4	18.4		34.7	33.2	34.0		15.9	15.0	15.4	$20,376	$1,923	$18,453
Greenfield Middle	Public	6-8	1109 Pacheco Rd.	Bakersfield	93307	Kern County	Greenfield Union	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 837-6110	873	42	21.0	95.6%	40 (4.6%)	65 (7.4%)	734 (84.1%)	12 (1.4%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (2.3%)	33.2	1709^th of 2761 public middle schools	38.1%		38	1531^st of 2783 public middle schools	45.0%	178	25.3	25.3	38.3	42.7	38.2	39.7	22.5	19.6	19.6	20.6	$17,323	$2,055	$15,268
Beardsley Junior High	Public	7-8	1001 Roberts Ln.	Bakersfield	93308	Kern County	Beardsley Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 392-9254	383	20	18.9	97.4%	100 (26.1%)	25 (6.5%)	239 (62.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (4.7%)	16.6	2375^th of 2761 public middle schools	14.0%		17.3	2378^th of 2783 public middle schools	14.6%	3	14.8	14.8		29.2	25.3	27.3		11.1	10.9	11.0	$16,313	$1,478	$14,835

Frequently Asked Questions about Emerson Middle

What high school do graduates of Emerson Middle attend?

Students who attend Emerson Middle usually go on to attend Bakersfield High

Is Emerson Middle a good school?

Emerson Middle ranks in the bottom 9.9% of California middle schools.

What district is Emerson Middle in?

Bakersfield City

What is the racial makeup of Emerson Middle?

Students at Emerson Middle are 77% Hispanic, 13% African American, 6% White, 2% Asian, 1% Two or more races.

How many students attend Emerson Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 813 students attended Emerson Middle.

Rate Emerson Middle!

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the California Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.